Tarpons Rally Late to Open Second Half With Gritty Win

TAMPA, Fla. – The Tampa Tarpons (1-0) opened the second half of the season with a gritty 8-7 victory over the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (0-1) on Friday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

The Tarpons struck first in the second inning when Luis Puello launched a 416-foot home run over the left-center field wall, giving Tampa an early 1-0 lead.

Fort Myers answered back in the top of the third, capitalizing on a bases-loaded opportunity with a grand slam into the right field bleachers to take a 4-1 advantage.

Despite the early deficit, Henry Lalane settled in and delivered a gutsy performance on the mound. After allowing the grand slam, the Yankees’ No. 14 prospect shut down the Mighty Mussels, tossing a career-high 6.2 innings while punching out eight.

The Tarpons began their comeback in the bottom of the fifth, taking advantage of a Fort Myers throwing error that allowed Ediel Rivera and Luis Escudero to score, cutting the deficit to 4-3.

Tampa continued to benefit from Fort Myers’ mistakes in the seventh inning when Escudero came home on back-to-back wild pitches. Jackson Lovich then gave the Tarpons the lead with a 104.5 MPH laser over the right-center field wall, putting the home team ahead 6-4.

The Mighty Mussels trimmed the lead to one in the eighth when Ryan Sprock scored during a bases-loaded 6-4-3 double play.

Greysen Carter picked up his fourth win of the season after 1.1 innings of relief, improving his record to a perfect 4-0.

Escudero provided some much-needed insurance in the bottom of the eighth, delivering a two-out RBI single. Gabriel Lara followed by ripping an RBI double off the top of the right field wall, extending Tampa’s lead to 8-5 heading into the ninth.

Fort Myers made things interesting in the final frame, but Josh Tiedemann shut the door to earn his fifth save and preserve an 8-7 Tarpons victory.

The Tarpons will continue their series against the Mighty Mussels on Saturday at GMS Field, with first pitch slated for 6:30 p.m.